Coffee Break
by xx.cityofangel
Summary: Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door? AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING! Hey! We may be onto something here! CHAPTER SEVEN; THE TROUBLE WITH SHOWERS.
1. Oh God It's My Boss!

_Disclaimer_: If I owned Fullmetal Alchemist, Roy'd be a vampire & Riza'd be his Bella. And just for good measure if I owned the Olympics I'd give all the gold medals to me. But don't worry, you can have the silver and bronzes, sis. (thebluerainangel) :D.

_Summary_: Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be onto something here!

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter one; oh god it's my boss_

EVERY MORNING, RIZA saw him on the bus.

Ruffled black locks which never appeared to be tame, burning onyx eyes that _almost glared_ into the newspaper he was holding prisoner in one hand, coffee cup in the other (which apparently wasn't the _best_ coffee, as his nose scrunched up almost every time he brought the item in question to his mouth). Sometimes, he would even fall asleep on the half hour ride to wherever it was that he went.

It was while he was asleep that she liked to run her eyes over him, as it would seem much too invasive if she analysed him and he caught her looking. His outfit most often consisted of silk black pants and a white button-up dress shirt, half-way buttoned up from the bottom, most of it's edges not tucked into his pants. Occasionally, he threw on different colours, blues that drew out his eyes, reds, and sometimes, even a black one (of which she thought he looked the best in, as it made his eyes seem almost startling against the blackness of his clothes and hair) when he felt daring. On his person, the man carried many notebooks, some of which he carried in his bag, some of which he stuffed into any available pocket, and some just hanging rather miserably clutched in his hand and falling all over the floor.

Every morning, he would mount the bus tiredly exactly two stops after hers. Their bus (she wasn't exactly sure when she had started addressing it as _their _bus as oppose to _the _bus, or _her _bus, even) ran every hour, not exactly a frequent bus as it ran in a rather empty part of the city. Therefore, she saw him every morning as there really was no option to take a bus at a different time.

Usually on the bus, there were few people. Four, maybe five. Occasionally, it was just the two of them and the bus driver, of whom was a tall blonde man with shining blue eyes. Usually, Riza couldn't stand people who smoked, but for some reason the cigar that was seemingly _always _in the man's mouth seemed almost friendly in its matter. (When she thought that, she figured the smell of his smoke must've gotten to her head) Still, she figured he was a rather forgetful man, as every time he stood, he would forget his tallness and bump his head on the top of the bus, as his driver's stand was elevated and he was rather tall. Every time this happened, the black haired man would cackle rather evilly and say, "You're such a dumbass, Havoc," or some other kind of insult, and in return the blonde, Mr. Havoc, would grin sheepishly and respond with a, "Shut up, Mr. Artist."

The 'Mr. Artist' seemed to be an insult, as the black haired man (whose name she had not yet found out) would glare at the bus driver before hopping off the bus to plop down on the bench in the bus station (as their destination was the last on the route of that particular bus).

She always wondered what it was that Mr. Artist did just sitting there, but she never waited long enough to find out as she was on her way to the Cafe to work.

So it was on this day, a rather rainy day, for that matter, than she was surprised to find the bus cruising by Mr. Artist's stop without stopping by to pick him up. She looked around, almost startled, to realize that he was not there at his stop. The bus rolled on for another thirty seconds while she settled in her seat at the back of the bus (which she sat in every day, he would sit in the one opposite of her) when she jumped up at the sound of something solid_ thump-_ing against the back of the bus.

Peering out the window, she cocked an eyebrow at the rather comical sight before her.

Trailing the bus at a breakneck run, was the still quite sleepy looking Mr. Artist, bag, cup of coffee, and newspaper in his hands and his various papers in all their glory gracing his person. For a moment, all she could do was stare until he chucked a pencil at the bus. Startled, she called out to the bus driver, "Um. Mr Havoc? Uh.. well. That Mr. Artist is running after the bus.."

Mr. Havoc's eyes sought the man running after the bus through the mirror propped at the front of the bus, before a grin spread across his face, and he put on the brakes. Mr. Artist, rather surprised, stopped running just in time to not crash into the back of the bus. Hurrying, he rushed to the front of the bus, dropping the change into the bus' money collector thing, where he was greeted by a more-than-happy-to-tease-him Havoc. "Hey Mr. Artist. Training for the Olympics?"

"Shut up, Jean." He clomped rather heavily, (and soggily) to the back of the bus and plopped down on the seat in front of her, groaning. She regarded him almost daintily, his shoes were muddied and wet along with his pants, and his white (why did he have to wear a white shirt, today of all days?) was half-way see through due to the rain. (Riza OOC? Yes, I know. I apologize but it's _much _more interesting this way, and besides, who wouldn't want to look at Roy while his shirt's see through? :D)

Almost suddenly, one meridian eye cracked open, _almost _catching her staring. She could feel his gaze wandering up and down her, stopping at places she rather wished it didn't.

The bus stops came and went, and it was twenty minutes later that she dared to glance up again, and relieved to find that he was sleeping soundly, his eyes safely _not _on her. When the bus jolted to a halt by the station, she wasn't surprised when the driver, who jumped up even quicker than usual (probably so he could tease Mr. Artist) bumped his head again to the top of the bus.

This time, he barely noticed, and before Mr. Artist could open his mouth to say anything, Mr. Havoc grinned triumphantly, declaring proudly that he was going to tell his fellow bus drivers on Mr. Artist's latest misadventure.

Mr. Artist, shrugging tiredly, followed Havoc off the bus, and Riza quickly dashed off to the Cafe, knowing full well she was already late due to the traffic that their bus had gotten caught in.

--

"Riza! You have a delivery to make!" she groaned, turning to face her boss, Mr. Armstrong. She was a hardworker, but this was something else, after all, what sort of coffee shop actually went so far as to _deliver _their coffee personally?

Mr. Armstrong, in all his pink and shiny glory, propped his large hands on his hips, flexing muscles that showed quite clearly through the rolled up sleeves of his t-shirt (which she figured must have been a size XXXXXXXXL, he was quite bulky). "Miss Hawkeye, the skill of making and amicably delivering coffee to our grateful customers has been passed down for generations in the Armstrong family! You should be _honoured _to be helping the citizens of Amestris with this show of public service!" With that, her one haired boss strided confidently out of the room, speaking proudly to his office about how wonderful it was to be serving the citizens of Amestris.

She almost jumped when his head, the host of one blonde hair and lots of shining things, popped out of his office and remarked, "And don't worry, Miss Hawkeye, the delivery's just next door. It's the office where those manga artists work! Fullmetal Alchemist Co.! In fact, my sister, Olivier Armstrong, works there! The art of drawing manga has been passed down-"

She ducked out of the Armstrong Cafe before she could drown in his family tree.

--

Large cup of coffee in hand, in didn't take her long to find the specific little room she was looking for. Apparently the cup of coffee was addressed to some Mr. Roy Mustang. Pushing open the door, she strided sourly into the room - only to step, and slip on a couple of pencils lying on the floor.

Full prepared to land on the floor (and pencils) and probably have the coffee spill on her, the way her luck was going, the last thing she expected was the warm hands that enclosed around her torso, and the muffled sound of surprise as she (and her would-be catcher) tumbled backwards.

Groaning as she picked herself up, she turned around, subtly noticing that she hadn't spilled a drop of the coffee, only to glance into the midnight blue eyes she'd inspected earlier that morning. It didn't take her long to figure out who they belong to.

"_You._"

"Yep, me. Oh, it's you. The girl on the bus."

Barely noticing the fact that he was still lying on the floor, elbows propped under him so that he was at an angle, and that she was still quite between his legs, she smiled almost ruefully, having recovered from the shock of finding out that the mystery Mr. Artist she had been analysing every day on her trip to work had been, in fact, merely a building away from where she worked, "Um.. the art of making and delivering coffee has been passed down for generations in the Armstrong line?"

_"**Roy Mustang**. What did I say about bringing girls into the office?" _a voice from outside Mr. Mustang's office commented.

Roy's face paled considerably, well, as much as it could considering his face already had a rather pale complexion, "Oh god. It's my boss."

_Author's Note: _AND. I'll leave you there for now. Who's Roy's mystery boss? BRADLEY? _FALMAN? **SHESKA?! **_Haha. You'll have to wait to find out. :D. I apologize for the OOC-ness of the characters, but it makes the story so much more.. _fun. _

In any case. THANK YOU SIS, MEHKAHA (THEBLUERAINANGEL) FOR GIVING ME THE IDEA & LETTING ME STEAL IT CAUSE WE ALL KNOW THAT I HAVE NO STORY IDEAS.

Review and I'll tell either Roy/Riza to come visit you, tonight. ;D. (Although there are no guarantees as to what'll happen when the other comes to claim him/her back).


	2. Mr Bastard! Where the Hell Is My Cookie?

_Disclaimer_: If I owned Fullmetal Alchemist, Ed would have bunny ears. (but he'd still be short)

_Summary_: Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be onto something here!

_Author's Note: _Thank you everyone who reviewed. :D. So. Who's Roy's boss?! Okay. ONE of the reviewers was right, but I was actually quite taken by _I Am The 1st Anonymous_' guess that Hayate was Roy's boss. I almost nearly decided to go through with that, but in the end I decided to stick to the original. Anyway.. Roy's boss is.. :D.

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter two: mr. bastard! where the hell are my cookies? _

"_**ROY MUSTANG. **WHAT did I say about bringing girls into the office?" _a voice from outside Mr. Mustang's office commented.

Roy's face paled considerably, well, as much as it could considering his face already had a rather pale complexion, "Oh god. It's my boss."

Looking up almost fearfully, she peered up into the glint of the figure hovering above the two of them. "Wait, wait! Maes, this isn't what it looks lik-" Suddenly, before Mr. Mustang could finish his sentence, the figure leaning over them swivelled around and sighed dramatically, "Elric. _What _do you think you're doing? I told you to hold the flashlight _above _my head to add to the atmosphere!" he commented (well, in her opinion, it sounded more like a whine that she didn't expect from the man. You couldn't blame her, right? After all, he _was_ dressed in a rather expensive looking suit), hands propped on his hips for emphasis.

For a moment, she wondered what he was doing until she caught a glimpse as he swayed from side to side of a (rather short) figure behind Mr. Boss. The figure winced, glaring indignantly up at his boss. "Well I'm _sorry _Mr. Hughes (althoguh his 'apology' appeared more mocking than apologetic) for not being _tall enough _to reach behind your head!" he was yelling at the end, and if glares could kill, Mr. Boss would be long gone by now.

Despite the situation, Mr. Mustang cackled evilly again (the laugh that she had officially dubbed the 'Havoc cackle'), smirking happily, "Hah! Even you admit it, Shortward Punyric!"

Immediately, the small blond wheeled around to face Mr. Mustang, glowering so that even Mr. Boss backed up half a step or so, "**_WHO'RE YOU CALLING SO SHORT YOU COULDN'T EVEN TRIP OVER?!_**"

In response, Mr. Mustang just cackled some more, laughing so hard his elbows fell out from under him, tumbling so that he lay flat on his back with her still sitting awkwardly on the floor between her legs. Normally, she would have moved, but the introduction to her cackling bus mate, Mr. Bossman who seemed to hold some power over Mr. Mustang, and the short little glowering-

"I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING! I _AM NOT _SHORT!" she flinched as the little blond glared at her, his finger pointing and accusing her (rightfully) of her thoughts.

"Now, now, Littleward-"

"**EDWARD! EDWARD FREAKING ELRIC! _NOT _SHORTWARD PUNYRIC, _NOT _LITTLEWARD TEENYRIC! EDWARD. ELRIC..!**" jumping, the cup of coffee in my hand fell out of my grasp, landing pitifully on the while tiled floor, spilling over. Staring at it, Mr. Boss finally decided to step in.

"Edward, please get back to editing Roy's work." when the little blond just continued leering at Roy, Mr. Boss grinned, rectangular framed glasses sheening over with a (mysteriously) silver film so that she could no longer see his bright eyes. Hand reaching threateningly into his pocket, she watched, fascinated as Mr. Elric perked right up, darting quickly out of the small office, leaving a trail of upturned papers flying in his wake and shouting something like 'Well, I'll get right onto that editing!' over his shoulder.

"As for you, _Roy_.."

She turned around, watching Mr. Mustang as he gulped slowly and watched Mr. Hughes as he pulled his hand slowly out of his pocket. Then, the room exploded in a flurry of "Eeeee! Roy Roy Roy! Look at Elysia! Isn't she just ADORABLE! And look, this was where she first played with this toy! And her first blink this morning!" and so many pictures whirring past, she was pretty sure she got a paper cut on her arm from one of them blasting past her at speeds she didn't realize was possible for a piece of paper.

"AH! MAES! She was just delivering coffee!"

"YOU'VE ONLY JUST MET HER AND YOU'RE ALREADY HITTING ON HER! YOU NEED TO SETTLE DOWN, ROY! THEN YOU CAN HAVE A BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER LIKE MY WONDERFULEST ELYSIA!" and the man let loose another storm of papers and comments about his 'wonderful beautiful darlingest daughter Elysia'.

"**MAES**! SHE JUST FELL ON ME! I WASN'T HITTING ON HER! DO I _LOOK _AWAKE ENOUGH TO HIT ON ANYONE?"

At this, the man attacking Roy stepped back, cocking his head, "Hm. Nope! You look dead beat!" he crowed happily.

"..EXACTLY! Look what you've done, Maes! You spilled my coffee!"

Mr. Hughes grinned sheepishly, "Heh. Um. I'll let you have another break to buy another one?" suddenly, Mr. Hughes brightened, "HEY! That's a great idea! I know! You can treat the company to coffee!" he turned to her, "Is you coffee any good?"

She blinked, suddenly speechless, "Um. The art of coffee making has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations.." she stated, rather weakly. He grinned, seemingly oblivious to her baffled state. "Great!" Poking his head energetically and ignoring Mr. Mustang's rather pleading refusal, "Everybody! Roy's going to treat us all to coffee!"

Groaning, the raven haired man in front of her groaned, turning to her defeatedly, "More importantly," he muttered, "Is your coffee cheap?"

--

"Well, Hawkeye! You've surely done a great job, delivering all these customers to us!" her boss announced pleasedly, his sparkles glittering even more prominently than usual. All of a sudden, he burst in tears, exerting himself to give me a hug (that really was rather bone crushing), "I'm so proud of you! You've certainly become a worthy apprentice of the Armstrong line! If only you could sparkle my father would adopt you as my sister!" he sobbed.

Twitching, she froze, (mostly because she couldn't breathe) until a cough interrupted Mr. Armstrong's burst out, "Um. They want cookies now." he grumbled, looking really quite annoyed.

Immediately, Mr. Armstrong brightened up, "The art of baking cookies has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!" dashing off to the interior of the shop where he baked his delicacies, leaving behind a few lingering sparkles, leaving me alone with Mr. Mustang.

"MUSTANG. WHERE THE HELL ARE MY COOKIES?" I heard the blond from earlier question.

The man in front of me promptly ignored him, and grinned at me. "Your boss doesn't seem much better than my boss, with all those sparkles."

Despite the dull pain on the skin covering her rib cage, she smiled at him, "Well, at least he doesn't bombard me with pictures of his 'darlingest' Elysia."

He laughed, a throaty sound that emanated from deep within him. He grinned, leaning closer to me over the counter, "Well, I was thinking of asking you out to a coffee sometime, but seeing as I don't think that would be quite as appealing to you, would you like to go somewhere this afternoon?"

_"MR. BASTARD! WHERE THE HELL ARE MY COOKIES?" _

_--_

_Author's Note: _Eh. I'm not exactly satisfied with this chapter, but.. WILL RIZA AGREE TO GO SOMEWHERE WITH ROY? AND WILL ED GET HIS OH-SO-DESIRED COOKIES?! And the next chapter will be better than this one, I promise.

Review & I'll give you one of Armstrong's cookies. :D. Can you hear Armstrong in the distance? ;D.

--City.


	3. Riza Hawkeye's Got a Thing for Her Boss?

_Disclaimer_: If I owned Fullmetal Alchemist, Al x Barry the Chopper would be canon. ;D.

_Summary_: Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be onto something here!

_Author's Note: _Once again, thanks to all the readers who reviewed. :D. And I read back the last chapter, and yes, I realized quite a few times I slipped into say 'me, my' instead of 'she, her'. I'M SO SORRY. Yes, I should get a beta reader. But. And yes, I know that chapter was rather poorly written, hope this one's better. :P. Anyway, enjoy the chapter. And yes, I think this story is more of utter randomness as oppose to serious romance. :D.

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter three: riza hawkeye's got a thing for her boss?!_

_"MR. BASTARD! WHERE the hell are my cookies?!" _

Groaning, he spun around on his heel, "SHUT THE HELL UP, TINYRIC!" he yelled, before turning back to her with a rather charming smile, awaiting her answer not-so-patiently.

--

She watched, bemused as he walked back to the table in which his fellow workers were seated at. Havoc, who'd popped into the cafe just a few moments ago, grinned at Roy, "What happened, Roy? You look as if you've seen a ghost!" Stumbling over to the table, Roy stuttered for a few moments, tossing Ed his cookie, (which he quite immediately started chomping on) before announcing, "She. Rejected. Me." he gritted his teeth, as if unbelieving of what he'd just admitted, then promptly toppled out of his chair.

The table was silent as all of his co-workers (and Havoc) stared at him in disbelief, before they exploded in a great mass of mutters, above it all, she could hear Havoc and Edward cackling in glee and Maes roaring his laughter, claiming that if Roy settled down he'd have a wonderful daughter to take care of.

Despite the chatter at the table, she continued wiping the counter. Before long, the short blond strode up to the counter, an evil, smug grin plastered seemingly permanent on his face. Reachign the counter, he grinned at her, "Heh. Great job, Miss. Mr. Bastard hasn't been rejected since.." and he trailed off, looking into space as if he couldn't draw up the memory of something.

Completely baffled, she muttered, "What's the big deal? I just refused to go to the theater with him, it's really not that outstanding.."

Edward, eyes glittering mischeviously, responded, "Oh no. This is a HUGE deal. Mr. Womanizer over there's never been rejected. He claims that no woman can resist his 'manly charm'." He told her, before errupting in laughter that was undeniably evil.

He handed her a credit card, managing to get out that it was Roy's card, and to give herself a very, very, _very, _generous tip.

--

(Later: Next door at Fullmetal Alchemist Co.)

Roy dragged Havoc by the ear quite unceremoniously into his office, poking his head out the door, "MAES, TINYRIC, TIN CAN, FUERY, BREDA, FALMAN, GET YOUR BUTTS IN HERE NOW!"

_"BASTARD! MY NAME'S EDWARD. EDWARD DAMN ELRIC! AND MY BROTHER'S NAME IS AL. ALPHONSE! NOT TIN CAN! AND BESIDES, WE'RE NOT THE ONES THAT GOT REJECTED TODAY!!" _Ed added, rather gleefully as he walked, glowering, into Roy's office, followed closely by Al, who managed to tip over a can of ink pens on his way in. Roy, showing unbelievable patience, barely registered this as he ushered in the rest of the crew.

When they were all seated in the cramped little office, Roy pulled out a large piece of chartpaper and a laser pointer (out of nowhere, cause this is a fanfic. ;D.) Looking uncharacteristically serious, he glared at the people in his office, "Okay, people. Let's go over the routine for mission Get Riza Away From Armstrong and Go Out With the Supertastic Outstandingly Awesome Roy."

"What. The. Hell, Mr. Bastard?" said Ed.

"Awh, I was on my way to lunch!" said Breda.

"LOOK AT MY DARLING ELYSIA!" said (or, rather, screamed) Maes.

'Mew!' "Shh.. kitty." said Al before petting the kitten hidden in his backpack.

"Oh." said Fuery.

"The word 'supertastic' doesn't exist." said Falman.

"She's got a thing for her boss?" said Havoc.

Suddenly the room was quiet, before Havoc said, "WAIT? WHAT? She's got the hots for _Armstrong_?"

Roy gritted his teeth, grumbling under his breath before finally admitting, "When she re-re-re. Reje-jected m-me.." he stumbled as if it were the most amazing thing in the world before continuing, "She said it was because Armstrong was coming over to her apartment, later on tonight." He glared as Havoc opened his mouth, smirk already quite visble before faltering due to Roy's glare.

"Anyhow. _This_ is what we're going to do." he commented, before pulling a veil off his chartpaper, a sketch of his plan with a rather detailed drawing of Riza on it.

--"Al. Why are we even helping that stupid artist, anyway?" Ed questioned, annoyed that he was actually caught _helping _Mustang. Al, in response, shrugged his shoulders happily, petting the kitten that was seated on his lap fondly.

The communicator in Ed's hand crackled to life, and Roy's annoyed voice crept to him, "_You're helping me because if you don't I'm sure I could find myself another editor!" _

Glaring at it, Ed threw the communicator into the bush in front of him, only to reach into the thorny bush to retrieve it when Maes' voice came over the line, "_Okay! Team super-awesome-crazy-team-of-super-awesome-craziness, the Hawk is in the Nest!" _

_"What the hell does that mean, Maes?" _somebody, probably Havoc exclaimed.

"_Do I have to explain EVERYTHING? Riza's in her house, obviously!" _Maes answered in response, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. _"Fuery! Did Muscle Man leave HQ, yet?" _

_"Uhm. If you mean whether Armstrong left the Cafe yet, then, yes." _came Fuery's tentative response. "_Since my part is done in this, can I go home now, Boss?" _

Then, Roy's voice emanated from the little machine, "_Okay, heading into the Hawk's nest. Operation you-guys-distract-Armstrong-while-I-go-in-and-Charm-Riza commence!" _

_"You know. We really should join the military." _Breda stated.

_"Tch. That's crazy, can you IMAGINE us in the military?" _Roy answered in response.

--

"Okay, brother. Let's distract Armstrong." said Al. Ed, more than happy to agree just so he could get the hell out of the bush he was currently inhabitating, tugged on the cat's tail, causing it to yowl in despair, dashing out of the bush and across Armstrong's feet. Al and Ed in response, chased after the cat, Al tugging Armstrong along, although it frightened him to be in the presence of a man so giant.

--

Fixing his shirt as best he could, Roy tapped briskly on Riza's apartment door. Maes had somehow managed to get Riza's address, though Roy still had no idea as to how the man got these things accomplished. Riza's door opened, and she smiled, "Mr. Armstron- Roy?" he smiled his best charming smile, praying to Dear God that his co-workers could distract Armstrong. Roy was a fit man, toned and strong, but he had no wishes to be caught in a squabble with _that _man.

"Good evening, Riza." he smirked, slipping past her to let himself into her apart. Sending his gaze skittering over her cozy little apartment, he was relieved to see no signs of a particularly romantic dinner, this must mean Riza and Armstrong had probably not been going out for a long time, fourth or fifth date, at best.

"If you don't mind my asking, Mr. Mustang, what exactly are you doing here?" her voice came from behind him.

He paled, he hadn't thought his plan _this _far. "Uhm. Well - you see. I - came to.. I.. wanted to ask you how to make coffee!" he nodded, apparently quite proud with himself. It was a good excuse, if you ask him.

--

Armstrong continued on his way, after having been delayed. He had helped Al and Ed catch their cat, announcing to them that the tradition of helping out citizens had been passed down the Armstrong line for generations. His sparkles glittered proudly. After all, it wasn't everyday he got to help a citizen.

Then out of nowhere, a black haired man popped out. "Armstrong, buddy!" the man exclaimed, "Have you seen these pictures of my darling daughter, Elysia?"

--

"You see," he continued, "The coffee I usually drink isn't very good! But this morning, when I drank your coffee, I was absolutely astonished! So, I would like you to teach me how to make coffee!" Roy stated. It wasn't totally a lie, the coffee that he got from his usual place tasted like a mix of water and beans that had disgustingly horrid flavour. Still, he didn't wake up early enough to make his own coffee.

She frowned at him, "You know, Mr. Armstrong is coming in a fifteen minutes, why not wait until he gets here? He can teach you." she suggested. Personally, she found it kind of queer that he had managed to find her home when she had clearly not given him her address. Still, he really was kind of adorable with his messed up hair and shirt that was anything but tucked into his pants, running out of breath as he gave her his explanation.

In his mind, Roy calculated. If Armstrong was due to her house in fifteen minutes, with the distractions, it should take him at least twice that. Thirty minutes. He grinned victoriously, plently of time to charm Riza, maybe even get laid really quickly. With this silent comment, his perverted thoughts took a run in his mind.

--

Armstrong strode on, tears still staining the corner of his eyes, that man Hughes truly did have a beautiful daughter. He had looked through all of Maes pictures, and quickly agreed that the man was lucky to have such a daughter. It had all been really rather emotional for him.

"Armstrong! Come take a bite with me and Havoc!"

Turning, Armstrong spotted Breda and Havoc walking towards him. Sparkling all the more happier, he walked over to join them. "It would be an HONOUR to dine with you gentlemen!"

--

"Roy?" she questioned when she saw the starry look in the raven haired man's eyes.

Snapping back to reality, he blinked a couple of times, "Yes? Um. What?"

She looked at him, "Have a seat," she said, gesturing to the couch.

Evil plot forming in Roy's mind, he smirked, "Actually, I really would like to take a shower, would you mind..?" She shook her head, thinking that he was kind of odd, but motioned him towards the shower anyway. He grinned, unseen by her. After all, who wouldn't fall at the feet of Roy Mustang with the sight of him after he'd taken a shower? And, he had to admit, he looked completely dashing with his hair wet and flopping over his eyes!

--

Decidedly full, Armstrong continued on his way. This most certainly was his day! He had been given opportunities to help young boys in need, shared in Maes' joy surrounding his lovely daughter Elysia, and joined in Havoc and Breda's meal. Furthermore, he was even going to give his lovely worker Miss Hawkeye a visit. Indeed, today was his day!

"Armstrong!"

Turning, he was pleasantly surprised to see Vato Falman striding towards him. "Vato! I have not seen you around for a while!"

"Well, I was wondering if you could go over the manuscript to Mr. Mustang's latest chapter of his manga with me? I am not quite sure if the use of these words are necessary in particular parts of his script."

Absolutely covered in pink sparkles by now, Armstrong regarded the man with star littered eyes. "Most definitely! The practice of studying the English language has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!"

--

Picking up a book and settling on her couch, Riza was surprised by a shriek coming from the rough direction of her bathroom. Then the door to the bathroom was thrown open, revealing a shocked looking Roy Mustang, dressed in nothing but a towel wrapped around his lower half. Mustang, who bolted out of the bathroom with wide eyes, seemingly oblivious that he was practically naked in front of her pointed a finger towards the bathroom.

"THERE'S. A. SPIDER. IN. THERE." he yelped.

A moment of silence passed between them, just long enough for the both of them to notice that he, gleaming wet, was wearing nothing but a towel, and that she was charming enough in her shirt, the top buttons unbuttoned so that it showed off her collar bones, but revealed no cleavage to his searching eyes.

He was suddenly quite aware of the prettiest set of eyes he'd ever seen and leaned forward. Despite the situation, Riza couldn't help but admit that he was rather handsome, and the way his eyes locked on hers was quite intimate. She found herself leaning towards him as well, his breath, smelling of ashes and a pleasant scent that she couldn't quite put a name on, whispered over her face.

Placing his hands whisper quietly on her hips (lower than she would've liked) and drew her to him. Placing his lips on hers so that they just touched, he smile when her long eyelashed brushed his cheeks, moving forward to deepen the kiss, his eyes shot open at a sudden movement beside her foot.

"Mmhk!" Watching her eyes flutter open in confusion, he involuntarily streaked away from the little spider crawling on the floor, she squeaking in dismay as his legs tangled with hers, bringing them both crashing to the floor. As it ended up, he landed on top of her, hands placed on both sides of her head, knees propped beside her waist.

"MISS HAWKEYE. ARE YOU ALL RIGHT? I HEARD SOME CRASHES AND A SCREAM!" someone (Armstrong, Roy's mind registered as he paled) called from behind the door.

_Bang! Bang! _Then the door was thrown open, quite forcefully, and Armstrong, fire in his eyes as he looked at Roy in his unorthodox position above Riza bellowed, "NOBODY TAKES ADVANTAGE OF MY EMPLOYEES! THE DUTY OF PROTECTING ALL, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO WORK FOR THE ARMSTRONG LINE, HAS BEEN PASSED DOWN THE ARMSTRONG LINE FOR GENERATIONS!"

--

_Author's Note: _GASP. Armstrong's come to 'rescue' Riza? Will Roy be able to survive this ordeal?! Haha. I don't know how I did with this chapter.

Reviews are loved. :D. As always.


	4. Death Note Roy Style?

_Dislcaimer: _If I owned FMA Riza would constantly have a box of bunny shaped chocolates on her desk. And if I owned death note, L would have puppy ears. :D.

_Summary: _Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be onto something here!

_Author's Note: _Thank you to all the reviewers and readers! So, Armstrong's come to rescue Riza from Roy's supposed assault?! Haha. Let's see what happens. And just so you know I'm winging this as I go along so. Yeah. :D. And yes, I'm wondering if there'll actually be any serious problems in this story later on, too. And you might have to know a little bit about Death Note to understand a little part of this chapter, but you'll survive. Just ignore that little snipet.

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter four: death note roy style? _

"NOBODY TAKES ADVANTAGE OF MY EMPLOYEES! THE DUTY OF PROTECTING ALL, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO WORK FOR THE ARMSTRONG LINE, HAS BEEN PASSED DOWN THE ARMSTRONG LINE FOR GENERATIONS!"

Riza, wincing under Roy as her door burst apart, glanced up to see Armstrong, lacking all his sparkles, and one lock of golden hair standing straight up stormed towards them. She watched as Roy's hand which had been beside her head, were whipped upwards as Armstrong picked their owner up by his arms (as he was still clad in nothing but a towel around his waist).

She almost laughed amusedly as Roy, handing by his neck, let out a startled rather cat-like yowl.

Roy on the other hand, pretty sure his life was about to end right there and then, squirmed miserably in Armstrong's hold. "IT IS UNFORTUNATE," bellowed Armstrong, tears leaking out of his eyes (something Roy did not expect from such a buff man) "HOW MISLEAD THE YOUNG PEOPLE NOWADAYS ARE, YOUNG MAN!"

"I SHALL TAKE IT UPON MYSELF TO EDUCATE YOU! After all, the duty of educating the young population has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!" Roy, shuddering as Armstrong looked him dead in the eye, sent a pleading look towards Riza, "I understand your hormones may be controlling your actions, but rape is not something a respectable gentleman such as you should be committing!"

Roy, apparently comprehending for the first time what Armstrong thought, sputtered wordlessly, before glancing at Riza and pointing at Armstrong, with nothing but a "Mmpf!" coming out of his mouth.

Riza, on the other hand, laughed amusedly, "Mr. Armstrong, he wasn't about to rape me, it was just an accident." Cocking an eyebrow, Roy glanced wide-eyed back and forth between Riza and her boss, not quite expecting Armstrong to be as trusting as he was. Armstrong, setting him back on the floor, towered over Roy and glancing at him with sincere eyes, "WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, MR. MUSTANG, I APOLOGIZE OUT OF THE DEEPEST CORNERS OF MY HEART! HOW FOOLISH OF ME TO ASSUME THE SITUATION FROM A MERE GLANCE!"

"It.. it's all right, really."

--

Armstrong, stayed for five minutes to apologize many times over to Roy, and Roy finally realizing that Armstrong had simply come over to discuss some of Riza's work schedules, sighed in relief. When Armstrong left, he decidedly announced that today was not his day (although that moment when his lips has brushed Riza's as he hovered over her before Armstrong interrupted had been very pleasant) as he discovered that in his rush to get out of the bathroom, his clothes had fallen to the floor, resulting in wet clothes.

Riza, who had gotten the largest t-shirt she had and given it to him, along with a pair of not so feminine shorts for him to wear. Faintly, she wondered where she'd gotten the shorts, but didn't think much of it.

"Mr. Mustang-"

"Roy. Call me Roy."

"Roy, so, what do you do at Fullmetal Alchemist Co.?" she questionned, pouring him a cup of tea. He, who had never been quite fond of the thin brown liquid, forced himself to take a sip. To his surprise, it wasn't all as bad as he thought it'd be.

"I'm an artist. I draw a series called Death Note." brightening, he set aside the cup of tea, grabbing his bag, "In fact, I have some of the work here."

Interested, she leaned towards him, which did not go unnoticed by him- "Really?"

"Yep, here, you can read some of it."

--

Half an hour later, despite that his clothes were most probable dry, they were both still comfortably seated on her couch, reading his work.

She laughed at certain parts, and he decided that her laughter was something he could get used to hearing, "Haha. L has puppy ears? That's cute." He laughed along with her, grinning when she pointed to his work, smiling delicately.

"Oh. But you killed L.."

He smiled, "Apparently, according to Falman - he's the one who mostly edits my work, Ed really isn't much help - we need a change in plot or the readers will get boreds."

"Awh, but I do like Near, he's cute. Like a sheep."

Grinning, he smiled at the blonde before him, "Yes, well, he does look rather attractive with bunny ears." Laughing, he decided altogether that she was someone he enjoyed being around. Which was strange in itself, usually, he decided to go with brunettes or black haired girls. The thin, bleach blonde blondes he'd met before her kind of scared him, honestly. And their blonde hair didn't compliment his paler complexion. However, her hair, the colour of golden raindrops appealed to him.

"Hmn. My favourite character has to be L, though Near is a close second. But that black hair and pale complexion does look rather charming." as if not realizing who her description fitted closely to, she laughed, and he grinned.

"Well, Misa is pretty. I do so like blondes." he smiled, leaning in closer to her. She, having finally realized the riddles they were both speaking in, glanced back at him, eyes boldly watching him through her curtain of eyelashes.

Leaning into her lips, he felt her shudder underneath him as he pushed her back onto the couch. Feeling sparks run up and down his spine, he trembled. He could feel her tentative hands perched on his shoulders; her touch that was like no one else's.

He felt a shudder of his own, before pulling back to relieve his lungs. Lowering his lips to hers again, the mood was unpleasantly ruined when his phone vibrated, shrieking shrilly in his pocket. Groaning, he pulled back, lifting his phone to his ear rather impatiently.

"ROY. MUSTANG! HOW _DARE _YOU BLOW OFF YOUR BEST FRIEND'S INVITATION TO COFFEE?! It _IS _MY BIRTHDAY TOMORROW, YOU KNOW!"

Wincing, he turned back to the blonde, giving her a slight kiss on the cheek and a mumbled, "See you later." before walking out the door, leaving her staring after the closed doors, oddly looking forward the guaranteed bus ride the next day.

--

"Maes. You idiot, you're the one always telling me I need to settle down with a woman." Roy grumbled as he pulled the chair out and plopped down on it.

Maes, at this point with stars in his eyes, absolutely glittered, "Oh Roy! You've finally met someone?! Who is it? Who? Who? Oh no, did I interrupt something? Who is it? C'mon, you know you wanna tell meee!" he shrieked, bouncing up and down on his chair.

Roy for his part, managed to keep from throwing the sugar pack he was currently emptying into his cup of coffee onto his friend. "I'm not going to tell you. I'm sure if I did you'd come up with some plot to get us together." Looking at his coffee cup fondly, he wasn't quite sure how even a cup of coffee, the slightest reminder of his favourite blonde made him feel all fuzzy.

"Oh! It's that coffee girl, isn't it?"

Roy, looking up alarmed, not guessing that his friend would pinpoint the answer so quickly.

"Eeee!" his friend grinned, "I'm so glad, so glad for you! Oh, I know! I'll invite her tomorrow to my birthday party so you two can _mingle." _rather happily, Maes dashed out of the coffee store, leaving an upset Roy with the cheque.

_Author's Note: _:D. Will Maes' plan succeed? (Doesn't Maes always win, one way or another?)

Anyway, leave a review with your thoughts. :DD.


	5. Like Father Like Daughter

_Disclaimer: _..RoyxEd scares me.. no offense to any people who support them. Anyway, if I owned FMA.. Roy would have a pet cat named roylovesriza. (:

_Summary: _Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the same bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be on to something here!

_Author's Note: _Thank you for the people that reviewed. (: Anyway, here's the next chapter.

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter five: like father like daughter_

_--_

ROY YAWNED miserably, pulling himself out of bed. Dressing himself smartly in a suit, he grumbled to himself, picking up Maes' gift, and throwing it annoyedly into a bag, picking it up and carrying it to his bus stop. He'd taken the bus a few times on Saturday, and there usually wasn't even one other person on the bus. He barely dared to hope that Maes had actually gone through with his plan to get Riza to come to Maes' birthday party.

Watching as the bus screeched to a stop in front of him, he quickly got on, depositing the change into the bus' money collector, giving Havoc a lazy wave. Turning to the end of the bus, he was pleasantly surprised to see his favourite blonde waitress seated at the back of the bus.

His earlier surprise turning to delight as he realized that Hawkeye was asleep, he grinned, taking a seat next to her, setting the gift bag onto the seat beside her, where her gift was already residing, he yawned, coiling an arm around her shoulder and smirking as she barely shifted, he closed his eyes pleasantly on her shoulder, quickly drifting off to sleep.

--

Eyes opening tiredly, Riza woke to find that she was rather comfortable. That was when her mind registered two things that were wrong.

First of all, she wasn't in her room, which she quickly remembered that was because she had fallen asleep on the bus. However, the second fact was more than a little distressing. The thing her head rested on was soft. It didn't take a genius to realize that bus seats were not soft.

Raising her head, Riza's eyes widened, catching sight of the asleep Roy Mustang who'd curled his arm around her shoulder. And apparently, Roy was a rather clingy sleeper, having pulled her to his chest so that she was half of her seat more on his lap. She would have blushed if she weren't so shocked.

Stuttering wordlessly, she'd looked at him with wide-eyes before being interrupted by laughter. Wheeling around, she saw Havoc laughing amusedly while watching her. "Hey there, Miss, not the face you were expecting to wake up, to?" Then she blushed.

"No-I, um. I."

When he groaned groggily, she turned her attention back to him, half admitting to herself that he looked rather like a little boy as he blinked sleepily, catching sight of her and grinning like a little boy. "Oh." he commented, "Hey there."

--

After a rather awkward conversation (well, at least on her side) on the bus, she was somewhat relieved when they finally arrived at their stop. Both of them walking to the front of the bus, she'd noticed Roy looking her up and down, taking in the pale red dress she wore, along with low crimson heels and her hair let down.

She blushed when Havoc whistled, grinning at Roy, "That's some date you got there, Mustang."

Her eyes widened, "I'm not his-"

Chuckling, she twitched when he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her so that she was against his hip, he grinned at Havoc and turned to give her a sly wink.

--

Ringing the doorbell and stepping into the Hughes' household, Roy and Riza were greeted by Maes, who bounded down the stairs energetically with a squealing girl on his shoulders, "Hawkeye! Roy! You wanna play with Elysia? Oh wait- Riza, you haven't met Elysia before, have you? This is Elysia, my wonderful daughter!"

"Maes, let's try not to overwhelm our guests so soon, shall we?" A pale blonde stepped down the stairs following Maes, "Good to see you again, Roy, and you must be Riza? I'm Gracia." Smiling, Riza shook the woman's hand, "Yes, I'm Riza. Good to meet you, do you need any help in the kitchen..?"

"Yes, that would be lovely, dear. Roy, make yourself and home, and Maes.." she sent a look to Maes, in which he squirmed sheepishly, Elysia seemingly imitating her father's look.

--

Stepping back into the living room, where Roy, Maes and Elysia were playing cards, she and Gracia went to sit on the couches, Gracia beside her husband, leaving Riza to sit (rather squished) against Roy. She and Gracia had made fast friends, and chatted with them for a few minutes.

About ten minutes from when the rest of the guests were supposed to arrive, Elysia looked up from playing with her little stuffed dolls, watching the adults with wide eyes until Maes questioned, "What is it, Honey?"

The little girl, biting her lip as if contemplating something, before asking, "Are Aunty Riza and Uncle Roy married?" Flushing, Riza turned to look at Roy before saying, "No, we're not-"

"And are they going to have a baby? I want a playmate!"

A little miffed, Roy muttered, "No, Elysia, we're not a couple."

Quite apparently put out, the little girl stood up, propping her hands on her hips and announced, "Well, I think you guys should be little mommy and daddy. Cause I know you like each other!" eyeing them indignantly, Elysia was unexpectedly scooped up into her father's arms, who was grinning proudly before saying, "Like father like daughter."

Gracia, laughing, hurried off to open the door to let in the rest of the guests.

_Author: _Review and you will be loved. (: And I may not update this story as frequently because I have to update my other story, Checkmate.


	6. A Drunk Roy is an Embarassed Riza

_Disclaimer: _If I owned FMA there'd be Royai in every episode/chapter. :D.

_Summary: _Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be onto something here!

_Author's Note: _Once again, thank you to all the reviewers. Also. If Roy & Riza didn't so so well together I'd totally support Havocai & Roy/Lust. Except that Roy and Lust would never work because if you mixed their names you get either Loy or Rust, neither of which would work. Moving on.

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter six: a drunk roy is an embarassed riza_

_--_

As the rest of the guests shuffled into the cramped little living room, Gracia behind ushering them in one by one and Maes and Elysia welcoming them in with Maes bouncing to everyone telling them about how Elysia was just like him by telling all the guests about the events of the past few minutes. Groaning, Roy palmed his face, peering out at the blonde waitress out of the folds between his fingers.

Coughing nervously, he mumbled a weak excuse about helping Maes welcome the guests, he offered her a half-hearted smile before escaping to Maes' side and gripping his friend's shoulder rather tightly. "Maes." giving his dark haired friend a sinister smile, "You may want to stop spreading that little tale or Gracia just _might _see that rather embarassing picture of you and that girl you used to hang around with at the Academy.

Immediately shutting his mouth, Maes turned to his friend, grinning nervously, "So. Would ya like something to drink, Roy, buddy? Elysia, why don't you go and play with Simon, over there?" he cheered happily, though falsely so before setting down his daughter and wheeling to face Roy, "I don't mind if you threaten me, but in front of Elysia? If I lose Gracia and Elysia I'll have nothing, Roy!" he rambled worriedly.

"Don't worry, I was joking, but stop telling people about me and Ri-"

"Oh, you might want to watch out, Roy. Looks like Archer's hitting on Riza."

"What?" he wheeled around to see Frank Archer seated closer than really necessary next to Riza on the couch, "Why'd you invite that bastard, Maes? You know I never liked him!" he exclaimed, seething and grabbing the drink offered by Maes.

"Well, you know, as much as I don't like him either, he does happen to be rather successful, and I doubt he'd look very highly upon our company's work if he found out I invited everyone to my party except for him." Maes shrugged, more than happily supplying Roy with more drinks as needed.

"Then I guess he'd just have to deal with it!" stormed Roy unhappily and drinking rather rashly from the cup Maes supplied.

--

Having thoroughly succeeded in his mission to get Roy drunk (finally, it was almost one, Roy could hold his liquor), Maes laughed giddily, skipping off to find his Elysia and on the way depositing Roy close to a weary looking Riza with Archer. Watching from a distance as Roy swaggered drunkenly to Riza's other side and practically dragging the blond onto his lap. Laughing guiltily as he watched, Maes heard Roy mutter something along the lines of, "Hey! Hands of my girl, Arch-ass!" and a couple other incriminating comments.

Finally deciding to rescue his friend, he skipped up to the three of them taking in the face of a shocked looking Archer and saying, "Sorry, Mr. Archer, he's had just a tad too much to drink. He doesn't mean it before dragging Roy and Riza to their feet and grinning at Riza, "Sorry, love, would you mind bringing him home? He might end up in Alaska if I let him figure his own way home."

Giving him a frail smile, she nodded, "It's fine, Mr. Hughes,"

"Maes! Really, why do you people all insist on calling me 'Mr.!' Really, I may be happily married with a daughter, but I am not that old!" he ranted.

"Well.. I'll be bringing him home, now, Maes."

"Thank you, dear!" With that, Roy promptly fell asleep against her chest and slumped against her, Maes bouncing away as she winced, bracing herself and shoving against him so that he would stay up on his feet and dragging him out the door.

--

Groaning as she arrived at the bus stop only to realize that there were no buses in this region at this time. Muttering as she sat him down on a bench, she plopped down beside him on the bench to take a break. Two minutes later, his bleary charcoal eyes blinked open, hazy and grinning at her and propping his eyes beside her shoulders and leaning in towards her face, "Hey there, what's a pretty gal like you doing all alone out here- wait. What am _I _doing out here?"

Turning and recognising her, he put on a completely puzzled look, "Riza?"

"You got drunk at Maes' party so he asked me to accompany you home and unfortunately," she frowned, "I just remembered there are no buses running in our area at this time." she muttered. Suddenly aware of their close proximity, he leaned in, pressing his lips to her warm ones. Responding to his kiss, she was glad to find that there were no lingering traces of his drinks in his mouth.

Squeaking almost inperceivably as his hands wandered under her shirt to finger the skin on her stomach. Suddenly pushing him away as a car drove past, leaving a wave of water to rise from the tires of the car to thoroughly soak the both of them. Coughing and sputtering like a wet cat, and quite sober by now, Roy growled at the passing car.

"Damn!" he grumbled.

_--_

_Author's Note: _Sorry this took so long to update but I'm having problems thinking of what to write for this story, most likely because there really isn't a problem. ;D. If anyone has any suggestions/ideas about the story feel free to leave it in a review or more preferably email me.

As always, read and review. (:


	7. The Trouble With Showers

_Disclaimer: _If I owned FMA there'd be an episode with ROY & RIZA & **A SHOWER** involved. (:

_Summary: _Roy a manga artist and Riza a waiter that works next door?! AND they have to take the bus together to work EACH AND EVERY MORNING?! Hey! We may be onto something here!

_Author's Note:_ O.O OHEMGEE! It's the (author's) Note of Doom! (thank you, carry on..)  
-- for lack of anything better to write in that section.

Oh yeah, I updated this chapter on resquest by _silver sniper of the night_ cause I really am lazy and this story is harder (for me) to write than my other stories.

COFFEE BREAK  
_chapter seven: the trouble with showers_

_--_

The date had started much like a normal one. Two days ago, he'd phoned to ask if she'd like to have dinner with him. To the relief of his somewhat quickly beating heart, her answer had been a positive one. So, he had taken the time to dress (though if anyone asked him, he would absolutely refuse to admit that he had taken at least three times the time it usually took him to dress up). Typically, Maes had picked this specific date to call him (having confiscated Roy's planner to see when he was going on the date with Riza) and given him a long and detailed speech on the _proper _number of dates he had to take a woman on before taking her to bed.

He'd also lectured him on strategies Maes'd found useful in resisting the urge to stare at _certain _places, and how to propose to a woman. To this, Roy had slammed down the phone, shouting at the phone that he had no intentions of marrying Riza. He could practically hear Maes' condescending laughter at the other end of the phone.

Of course, after this little debate, Roy had had to go upstairs, comb his every hair to perfection and unwrinkle his white dress shirt again.

--

Then, while they had started walking to the restaurant from Riza's little house, the rain had started to come down. Realising they couldn't continue on their way to the restaurant due to the fact that it was a good twenty minutes walk away and that her apartment was a good fifteen minute walk away, and the fact that both his dress shirt and her rather thin white blouse had quickly become see-through, they'd quickly run back to her house and stepped out.

When she'd opened the door to her house, Hayate (for some strange reason, he found it absolutely normal that she had a dog) had darted out the door into the rain, almost immediately tucking in his legs and rolling his back into the puddle of mud outside. Squirming pleasuredly in the mud and barking loudly, Riza had groaned. Walking back into the rain, she'd picked up the little puppy, dragging him into the house.

"Guess we'll have to give him a bath." she stated, smiling wryly, "Sorry, not quite the date you had in mind?"

He laughed, "No, _definitely_ not the date I planned, but sounds a lot less interesting than eating at a fancy restaurant. Seriously, ninety-nine percent of the women I date ask me to take them out to incredibly pricey restaurants, then eat two bites." She laughed, and he revelled into the soft sound of her laughter.

"_They_ have a _figure_ to look after." she said, walking into the bathroom with Hayate tucked in her arms.

"So. You wash your dog before you wash yourself or your guest? Who do you love more, me or the dog?" he teased, chuckling as briskly kissed a clean patch on Hayate's head before glancing up at him with sparkling crimson eyes.

"That's a silly question, Hayate, of course." Of course, their teasing tones did nothing to calm down her heart simply at the use of 'love' coming from his mouth.

--

By the time they had managed to get Hayate thoroughly washed, soaped, and rinsed, he was pretty sure they were messier than they had been in the beginning. The dog, rather liking to jump into his owner's and his own arms, had managed to dirty both his and Riza's shirt, leaving little brown pawprints and smudges all over both their unfortunately white shirts. Hayate, on the other hand, was practically glittering in his own cleanliness. Despite everything, he had to say this was the best date he'd ever been on. Her quiet voice provided nice conversation, rather than the usual, 'Do my thighs looks fat in this dress?' conversations he received from his date. When Riza shifted, even a brush of her shoulder against his would send his senses reeling unlike any other person made him feel. It was inexplicable.

Finally, they were on the last rinse, with himeself holding the shower head as Riza held the twitching puppy in her grasp. When she lifted one hand from the dog's back, Hayate, invariably seeing a chance to wreak havoc, decided to pounce into Roy's arms, causing the shower head to tumble out of his hands. For a moment, both he and Riza sat there while the it swayed back and forth, soaking them both again.

Then they both lunged forward, Roy pressing his hands over the top of the shower head, doing his best to prevent any more water from coming while she reaching desperately for the handle, shutting off the water. Groaning, she glared at Hayate as the puppy shook him, then bounded out of the washroom, barking happily.

Suddenly, he laughed.

Her eyes narrowed, "What's so funny?"

He grinned, "Us. We were planning on going on a romantic date, and we end up washing your dog. And-" he laughed again, her heart trilling at the deep throaty sound he produced, "-and, I'm having a great time! No deadlines, no thinking about a plot for a manga, this is great!" It wasn't long before she started laughing with him and even shorter when he started kissing her over the edge of the bathtub.

He almost felt his senses flutter as his hands, one propped on her back to hold her up, the other one propped on the side of the bath tub. Electricity ran up and down his body as she wrapped her arms around his neck. The feel of her long hair brushing his face made his chest heat up more than he ever thought possible. When he stopped kissing her, they were both breathless, which he found odd as he'd never been breathless after a kiss.

He offered her a weak smile, his mind still temporarily absent. Roy had always thought love was something he was better off, something that was an illusion. After all, what were the chances of finding the one person you really felt something about, and out of all the people in the world, have them love you back? Besides, it was a chancey bid that most likely would end up leaving you heart broken.

However, Roy Mustang found himself bidding himself entirely to it. As much as he'd like to think it was lust, he'd have to be in a coma not to separate this feeling from the others.

--

Glancing over at the clock, she smiled, "You can stay the night, if you want. It's almost two a.m. You can have the guest room." Smiling timidly at him, they bid their goodnights and headed to the respective rooms. It was almost an hour later that he finished debating with himself.

Creeping out of the guest room and jumping at the sound of thunder, he headed towards her room. Glancing warily at the door of her room at Hayate, who was peering suspiciously at him just outside the door of the room, he stepped into Riza's room, then closed the door with his foot, whispering a hasty 'Don't worry, I wouldn't do anything she would be uncomfortable with,'. And then he found it completely odd that he was even trying to impress Riza's dog.

Smiling at her in the semi-darkness. Apparently she slept with the blinds open, letting the shy moonlight creep into her room and lightly brush her features. Tiptoe-ing to the side of her bed, he sat down on the floor. He had come in with the intention to maybe lie by her side, but he didn't want to screw up his chances with her by scaring the hell out of her, and besides, it was very satisfying just to watch.

He peered at her the way a grandfather might look at his newborn grandchild, with utter adoration. As odd as it was, just watching her steady breathing made him feel warm. When her scent wafted over to him, he smiled. She smelled warm to him, much like warm washed clothes, but less artificial. She smelled familiar to him, though he had only known her for a relatively short time.

His eyelids drooping down sleepily, he smiled, resting his head on her bed, inches away from her own. The last he could comprehend in his head was that even though he'd never hear the end of it from Maes, he love for his to be right about this relationship.

--

_Author's Note: _Okey. **Of course** I meant Roy and Riza washing Hayate in the shower! What did you _think _I meant? :D.


End file.
